You know about bees. How they’re the best cross-pollinators and how their contribution to our lives is crucial and all that, right? So then you’re also aware of how our diligent bee population is suffering and about the mysterious disappearance of large numbers of honey bees that researchers call colony collapse disorder. You know all this, don’t you? What harsh realities.
Never will I intentionally harm them.
Yet, I did.
Let me tell you how that came to be.
Feeling that the end of the month was descending on me rapidly, I hurriedly decided to spend the night in my son’s vacant room. To work on finishing the monthly commitment I made to my many subscribers, you see, the one about sending out monthly newsletters.
Knowing that come morning, the sun was resplendent in my son’s room, I determined to close the shutters to cocoon me “incase” the letter-completion kept me up too long, and I needed to borrow from the hours of the morning to get enough sleep. You know how that is. Anyway, that was my reasoning.
Had it not been for that, the shutters were to remain open, and as such, I wouldn’t have made the acquaintance of this particular cosmopolitan araneids spider I’m about to tell you about.
As I leaned in to pull the shutter, I saw the intricate web of that orb-weaving spider. And sitting on the side, there, twiddling its thumbs, the craftsman itself.
Our eyes locked — I’m sure of that.
“Hello,” I told it, holding its gaze. I smiled when I saw it nodding like a little know-it-all Anansi.
And so, befriending that spider was the big mistake I made. Really, upon seeing that spider web that evening, I should have reached for my broom… um, maybe. But instead, I saluted it, complimented it on the gorgeous embroidery it created, wished it a good night, closed the shutter, and promptly set to writing my article. That’s how you treat friends, AmIright? Right!
So the next morning, when I opened the shutters to welcome in the late morning sun, my jaw went lax, and remorse overtook me when I saw the tiny carcass; the irrefutable yellow and black colors of a honey bee, bundled up in a small ball of residue — the spider’s midnight candlelight-dinner had been a precious bee I vowed to protect — I was shocked!
And the spider, fatter now than the one I remember befriending the evening before, sat immobilized and snoring. I couldn’t believe it; the silly spider devoured a bee while I slept. Darn, I could have saved that poor bee from being caught in that web. But I was too friendly and perhaps too lazy.
Suddenly, that spider looked like an enemy…
But really, how was I to know that Mr. Spider’s meal would be a precious worker bee? I couldn’t have. Regardless, that small situation made me feel responsible.
My heart ached.
Yeah, the spider and the bee incident set my mind a-thinking about the transcience and preciousness of life and nature and my role in it.
My take after the fact: be kind to all living things. It’s not just about doing good but about not doing bad to all living things. I can live with that, and now I move on.
***
The Tapestry of Life
My heart aches. Over the weekend, people in my adopted country have been mourning the premature death of an up-and-coming young lady who got caught up in a web of a different kind. Hana Kimura, 22 years of age, found her life-calling in pro-wrestling. Until this weekend, I had never heard her name before.
In all honesty, this second part was not intended as I shy away from celebrity gossip and such. Still, even I cannot help but notice a not so nice pattern in the aforementioned isolated spider-bee incident and Hana’s story. This young woman recently got caught up in the hideous web of social media.
Personally, I’m far removed by anything that happened to her, but mentioning Hana Kimura like this is my way of showing my respect to a strong young woman who mean-spirited individuals preyed on, churned to pieces, making her feel she couldn’t cope.
What a shame this is. What a waste of life. Those despicable individuals who made Hana feel ‘less than’ sucked the life-juices out of her. They ought to be ashamed of themselves. Bullying must stop! May you rest in peace now, young lady.
Here again, the lesson is the same. Be kind to all living things. It’s not just about doing good but about not doing bad– to all living things. If you have nothing good to say about someone, please, for the transcience of being, for the preciousness that life is, treat your life and that of everyone else with reverence. Curb your tongue. Careless Words have Consequences. Practice kindness.
I Wish You Miracles.
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I had a bee visiting my kitchen every day for several days. It would pick up drops of water. I actually looked forward to it’s coming And then it stopped… (sad) I do miss it.
You did? Oh, I bet it came for the drops of water and the positive vibes. I love the rhythm of the vibration coming from your area, particularly the youtube videos *wink* so I imagine that bee felt it as well. Don’t be surprised it shows up again. Again, thanks so much for sharing your thoughts with me here. Be well, dear friends. Tikkun Olam
and I wish you Miracles.